Chapter 649: Explosive Mystery Bonie

At the foot of the dormant Chimney Mountain, Lavaridge Town stood amidst lush greenery.

Although Lavaridge Town appeared quite "desolate" and simple in the game Pokémon Emerald, in reality, it not only possessed tall modern buildings but was also dotted with hot springs everywhere.

Due to the volcano's influence, the vegetation here was also exceptionally vibrant; lush plants grew vigorously, making the entire town seem as though it were surrounded by Hoenn's great nature.

Though it could not compare to the vastness of a proper city, among the many settlements named "town," Lavaridge Town stood out like a crane among chickens.

This was likely inseparable from Lavaridge Town's extremely developed tourism industry.

Just as mentioned before, thanks to its superior geographical conditions, unlike the single instance in the game, Lavaridge Town had truly realized the concept of "hot springs everywhere."

Walking along the bustling town roads that felt like a festival, the scent of sulfur would occasionally drift into one's nose; at such times, merely glancing in the direction the scent came from would mostly reveal a corner of a hot spring, large or small.

Some were open-air hot springs for private family use, while others were prepared by inns for their guests.

Due to the Japan-like culture, the hot springs here were basically mixed-gender baths, but if one was truly too shy, there were also hot springs open to a single gender or even for solitary use.

It was just that choosing those options meant the price was not very pleasant.

Apart from the hot springs occupied by humans, the people of Lavaridge Town had not completely monopolized such natural resources.

Most hot springs located in wild areas, outside the town's living zone, had been deliberately left undeveloped, kept in their natural state for the wild Pokémon living at the foot of Chimney Mountain.

Just like the Camerupts that Luo Mu and a group of travelers were riding, according to the tour guide leading the way, every time they made a trip from Lavaridge City to Lavaridge Town, before returning, the Camerupts would run to the wild hot springs to enjoy themselves for a while before setting off again.

They only made about two or three round trips a day, yet could go soak in the warmth to enjoy themselves and wash away fatigue at any time.

As a former "996 beast of burden," Luo Mu sighed once more, feeling that his past life was probably not even as good as that of these Camerupts.

Fortunately, nowadays his life was getting better day by day.

Wasn't that why he had come here to travel?

Although he very much wanted to go into the wild to see what the hot springs soaked in by wild Pokémon were like, which Pokémon would soak in them, and whether they would reveal any interesting reactions while bathing.

Luo Mu still chose to abide by Professor Londo's instructions.

No matter how much he wanted to visit a certain scenic spot or play in a certain place, the first thing to do upon arriving in Lavaridge Town was to secure his own accommodation.

—As a popular tourist city, sometimes even with money, there was still a chance one could not find a place to stay.

Let alone someone like Luo Mu, who had certain privacy requirements and hoped to exclusively enjoy a huge hot spring pool.

After pondering briefly.

Ignoring the prompt system that was trying to make its presence felt, Luo Mu, who had never liked using cheats in his life, stopped an old woman with a kind and gentle face and asked her for directions to "Hot Spring Street."

The old woman's way of giving directions was also quite interesting.

"Young man, just follow where the crowd is thickest, and you'll reach Hot Spring Street."

Carrying a bamboo basket covered with soft cloth that looked meticulously woven, the old woman gave directions to Luo Mu with considerable seriousness.

Sighing that the elderly truly had much experience and their words hit the mark, Luo Mu was just about to open his mouth to thank her, but he had underestimated this old woman, whose teeth had mostly fallen out and whose speech whistled through the gaps, yet who remained so enthusiastic toward tourists.

"Judging by your appearance, this is your first time in Lavaridge Town, right?"

"Take this; this is a specialty of Lavaridge Town!"

Speaking thus, with an irresistible force and method, the old woman very "skillfully" took a bunch of things out of her bamboo basket and stuffed them into Luo Mu's arms.

Luo Mu's first reaction was that he had probably encountered the forced buying and selling unique to tourism in certain places.

But when he lowered his head to see what the old woman had stuffed into his hands, he fell silent.

Several bags of well-packaged Lavaridge Senbei, which were a specialty of Lavaridge Town, did not surprise Luo Mu.

But the instant he saw the other item besides the local specialty Lavaridge Senbei, Luo Mu fell silent.

—Was this... a Pokémon Egg?

Luo Mu was just about to open his mouth to ask what was going on, only to discover that the old woman's figure had long since disappeared.

Looking back, he found that she had already appeared behind him.

The old woman was being asked for directions again, this time by a young tourist couple.

She still gave the same answer: "Follow the crowd; the place with the most people is Hot Spring Street."

Then came the familiar segment of forceful stuffing; Luo Mu just watched helplessly as the old woman stuffed Lavaridge Senbei and a Pokémon Egg into the couple's hands.

And the other party showed no intention of turning around to ask him for an exorbitant price.

—It was as if the old woman simply found him agreeable, or was truly so enthusiastic that she gave them as gifts directly.

Especially when, in the end, Luo Mu, having no choice but to accept, hugged this pile of "free gifts" and walked along the road toward "Hot Spring Street."

He witnessed quite a few times similarly enthusiastic old men and old women using the same technique to stuff a bunch of specialties into bewildered tourists, and occasionally, someone like him was additionally stuffed with a Pokémon Egg.

Luo Mu was already somewhat confused.

Or could it be that this thing looked like a Pokémon Egg but was actually some kind of special hot spring egg?

Harboring such doubts, Luo Mu walked into the clamorous Hot Spring Street and arrived at his destination, the hot spring inn recommended by Professor Londo.

The shop's name was "Unmelting Hard Ice," a name hard to imagine belonging to a hot spring inn.

The decoration style also seemed somewhat out of place with the style of Hot Spring Street.

Compared to those hot spring inns full of Japanese style, this place felt more like a Western noble opening a hot spring inn in Japan, possessing a sense of Japanese-Western fusion.

Professor Londo had said he knew the proprietress of this hot spring inn, and even Sidney, who had participated in the exhibition match that day, had been invited by him through this proprietress's connections.

However, Luo Mu might not necessarily meet the proprietress, after all, this hot spring inn seemed to be just one of her many properties in Hoenn.

What Luo Mu needed to do now was also very simple; although Professor Londo had already booked a room for him, to avoid complications arising from delay, it was better to register and check in as soon as possible.

There was a saying that went well: once night fell, even in the most remote inn in Lavaridge Town, one might not necessarily be able to book an empty room, even if the room did not come with its own hot spring.

You ask about the Pokémon Center?

That place was an even more heavy-duty hell difficulty; without some means and perseverance, one could not even snatch a bed in the communal dormitory rooms.

Just as Luo Mu intended to walk into the inn, the large door in front of him automatically opened from the inside.

This was not some kind of automatic door.

Behind the opening gate, on the entryway, a noblewoman with golden hair coiled up, wearing a purple long dress, was looking over with a smile on her face.

It was she who had opened the main gate.

With her arms crossed, her hands—still clad in white silk gloves despite the sweltering heat of Lavaridge Town—seemed to have anticipated Luo Mu's arrival long ago.

"You've finally arrived, Luo Mu."

Her slightly cool voice instantly brought Luo Mu back to his senses, while also making him realize one thing.

—This noblewoman knows me.

If things went as expected, she must be the proprietress that Professor Londo mentioned.

It was just that, aside from her attire being somewhat out of season, she struck Luo Mu as strangely familiar.

"Uh, hello, I reserved a room."

Luo Mu could only nod in response to her greeting.

"Of course, I have already reserved your room in advance."

The blonde noblewoman nodded gently, her gaze then falling upon the large pile of items Luo Mu was clutching in his arms, causing the delicate eyebrows on her well-maintained, exquisite face to lift slightly.

"It seems the local elders think you are a good person; otherwise, they wouldn't have given you so many things, or even entrusted a Pokémon Egg to you."

"That is true; even if it did not concern you directly, during the incident in Mossdeep City a few days ago, you chose to step forward and successfully turn the tide of battle; with their sharp, cunning eyes honed by age, it would not be difficult for them to see the nobility of your character."

Luo Mu: "???"

Compared to the fact that she knew all about his performance in Mossdeep City, Luo Mu was currently more surprised by what she had said regarding the elders and the Pokémon Egg.

Wait, is it really a Pokémon Egg?

As if she could see Luo Mu's shock, the blonde noblewoman smiled faintly and said, "Come inside first; we can discuss this matter as we walk."

"—Also, although it may be a bit late, please allow me to introduce myself."

"I am Glacia; as you can see, I am the owner of this 'Unmelting Solid Ice' Hot Spring Inn."

"But others seem more willing to call me—Glacia of the Ice."

"And coincidentally, I am also a colleague of that admirable Drake, whom you defeated three days ago."

Walking along the exquisitely decorated corridor of the inn, the sturdy wooden floorboards fitted tightly to the ground did not emit the sharp, creaking sounds of decay found in many dilapidated inns.

Just like the exterior style, the interior decoration style was exactly the same; thinking about it carefully, this was likely the other party's aesthetic preference.

Luo Mu secretly glanced several times at the back of the blonde noblewoman walking gracefully ahead to lead the way, holding an ornate fan she had produced from who-knows-where.

Glacia, the Ice-type Elite Four member of the Hoenn region.

Also known as "Explosion Maniac Glacia," her future ace, a Mega-Evolved Glalie with the Ice Body ability using Self-Destruct, focused on a fighting style that meant even if she lost, her opponent would definitely not have an easy time of it.

Inconsistent with her dignified and luxurious appearance, it was a fighting style that was quite "overflowing with passion" and "bold and straightforward."

To be honest, Luo Mu truly never expected that the acquaintance Professor Londo spoke of would be this person.

However, judging by her ability to invite an trainer of Drake's caliber for Professor Londo, along with the name of the inn and her attire, this information had actually been provided all along.

The only difference was that Luo Mu had not deliberately connected these dots together.

It was also possible that during the battle in Mossdeep City, in order to seek balance on the battlefield between the Hoenn Rayquaza, the Shiny Rayquaza, and Deoxys, he had burned too many brain cells and become somewhat dull as a result.

Luo Mu lowered his head again and looked at the Pokémon Egg in his arms.

According to what Glacia said, this Pokémon Egg was given to him without a second thought because that old lady, through her experience, judged him to be someone worthy of trust.

Leaving aside for now how the other party could make such a judgment based on experience.

Glacia, however, explained the motives of those old ladies and old men to Luo Mu with perfect clarity.

Because Lavaridge Town was an excellent retirement town, most of the residents living there were actually elderly people.

They utilized Lavaridge Town's unique hot springs to heal their gradually aging bodies while spending the rest of their lives here.

These elders were generally accompanied by Pokémon they had raised since childhood.

Among these Pokémon accompanying the elders, occasionally some would give birth to offspring between them, which was an inevitable occurrence.

The elders, knowing their days were numbered, worried that after these Pokémon Eggs hatched, there would be no good destination for them.

Thus, they walked the streets of this small town teeming with tourists, using their experience to judge whether a tourist was worthy of their trust.

If they were unsure, they would simply give some popular local specialty, Lavaridge Crisps.

If they could tell at a glance that someone would treat Pokémon well, they would entrust a Pokémon Egg to that person to care for.

Of course, the elders did not simply hand over a Pokémon Egg and forget about it; to avoid even a one-in-ten-thousand chance of misjudging someone, these elders would also transmit information through their own "village entrance intelligence network."

An old man who happened to pass by, or the proprietress of the grocery store where you bought local specialties, might all be silently observing your conduct.

"By the way, although I am not old yet, I am also a member of the intelligence network~"

Her advancing footsteps paused; Glacia turned her head, revealing a faint smile that was hard to detect, and teased.

Luo Mu: "."

"Hehehe, rest assured, I will give you a full score of one hundred points."

Seemingly amused by Luo Mu's expression, Glacia laughingly added a sentence.

Although she specialized in Ice-type Pokémon, she was not cold and aloof like most Ice-type trainers.

Luo Mu was not too clear about her performance in battles, but from this short period of interaction, he had actually developed the highly mock-worthy perception that she was a "bold and elegant noblewoman."

"Mm, since it has been entrusted to me, I will take good care of it as well, no matter what kind of Pokémon hatches from it."

Luo Mu made a serious promise to Glacia, and the look in his eyes as he gazed at the Pokémon Egg became somewhat gentle.

He did not know whether this counted as being moved by the scene.

Luo Mu suddenly thought of Lya, the trainer of the Dragonite leader.

During the time when she was old, if the Dragonite leader had brought back a Pokémon Egg, she would probably have been just like these elders in Lavaridge Town, worrying about what would happen to the Pokémon accompanying her and their offspring if she passed away in the future.

Then, she would carefully select someone worthy of trust and solemnly entrust the Pokémon Egg to that person.

Glacia did not miss the change in Luo Mu's demeanor.

The smile on her face deepened by several degrees.

As expected, not only is he a very powerful trainer, but also a good person.

(End of Chapter)